Three for Plotting
by xXSedationXx
Summary: Matt, Mello, Beyond, Helena and Clementine once again. Short blurb between White Knights and Pale Moonlight. Mello offers Beyond a chance to win Clementine back from L. Enjoy.


"What would you give me if I could deliver her back to you?" The blonde youth asked the older killer. The question was simple enough, but the fact of the matter was that Beyond didn't trust the boy father than he could throw him, and that was pretty far. The boy wanted something, and it was something that Beyond wasn't willing to part with just yet. Beyond already knew what the child was going to ask for, the question was, would Beyond give him the information. Could he? What would he actually give up to have her back? Beyond knew that the three children in front of him all knew about his eyes. He knew that all three of them would eventually come to him, asking when they'd die. It was unnatural, the gift he had, the curse. Beyond fell unusually silent, lost in though as he contemplated the next move Mello would make. The blonde continued finally, taking Beyond's silence as his cue to continue. "I want to know when." Beyond rolled the though around in his mind. Of course he wanted to know when he'd die, everyone did. Again, the question came down to, what would he give, to have his Clementine back?

"How." It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Beyond had no time for these games, and dawn would be coming soon, too soon for him to go out and have some of his customary "play time", and it wasn't really that late, but Beyond had to be picky with his prey now days. Further more, by telling Mello how much time he would have left, he would eventually be obligated to let the red head and the girl know as well. Beyond wanted to know how Mello though he was going to pull off taking his Clementine back from L, back to Beyond, finally, after waiting so long. "Certainly you don't think that anything you have in mind, I haven't already though of, and dismissed for the sheer foolishness of it."

"I have my ways, and I promise to deliver." The boy thumbed the crucifix that hung from his neck. Beyond shifted in the darkness, his eyes flashing red a moment, looking at the numbers above the boys head. Beyond had decided. He would give this to Mello, if it meant having his Clementine back. She was more important than future obligations to be the bearer of bad news. This, coupled with every new person who knew, meant the risk of L finding out, made Beyond hesitant to use his ability around anyone but Clementine. He knew his secret was safe with Clementine. Beyond made his decision.

"Seven years, three days, 23 hours and fifteen seconds, based on your current decisions in life." Beyond finally divulged quietly. The boy nodded, his curiosity sated finally, a drawn out sigh coming from his lips. Mello knew now, and knew what decisions he would make, would ultimately lengthen or shorten the time Beyond seemed able to innately see.

"Thank you." Beyond smirked, a thanks coming from the blonde was certainly something to not be taken lightly. Mello very rarely have anyone the thanks they deserved, and was even more of an ass when it came to being thankful period than L was. At least L occasionally showed his thanks in other ways. Mello was just an out right asshole.

"Now how." Beyond demanded, growing impatient now that he had delivered his side of the bargain. Beyond was loathe to wait for anything, especially once he made up his mind he wanted something.

"Just... do as you always do, taunt him with your play things, and let L catch you in the act. L will eventually see one play thing he cannot resist, and then, we let her catch him. Her emotions are swaying back and forth now that she's pregnant with L's child. Catching him in an..." The blonde paused, his tongue darting between his lips to wet them. "Indiscretion, would certainly sway her further away from him. And then, it would only be a matter of time before she would shut down to him completely." A curl of smoke rose in the darkness from a cigarette the red head was smoking near by. Beyond had always been fond of the red head, he had always seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. Beyond focused on the numbers above Matt's head, and then frowned. Less than Mello. That fact alone worried him, but he would deal with that later. Mello continued. "And as to the how of the indiscretion, let me worry about that. I tire of him lording around and strutting Mom about like she's some goddamned new toy, won from you. And she hates it too, you can tell."

"We all can tell." Came the voice of the only other girl Beyond had felt any true emotion for, the emotion of an older brother. Beyond let his eyes turn to the half Asian, half English Helena, relief flooding him as her numbers extended well into her sixties. At least she would live a good, long life. Now. To make plans to make sure the red headed Matt made it there with her.

"Mom deserves someone who can actually protect her, even if you where a rat bastard to her in the past. You've never failed at protecting her." Matt flicked his cigarette out into the yard, coming to stand next to Helena, Itsuki as she preferred now days. "We have a plan."

"Shut up Matt!" Mello snapped at him then, before turning back to Beyond. "The less Beyond knows, the better, because then he doesn't have to lie to Mom then." Beyond's brow quirked then, in quiet contemplation of the blonde's words. Didn't have to lie to Clementine? True, Beyond had never lied to her, but he had done far far worse in the past than a lie. Beyond looked at Helena now, eyes narrowed a bit in thought.

"Are you okay with what they are going to do?" Helena may be dating the red head, and friends with the blonde, but her moral compass was straighter than all of theirs combined. If she was okay with what ever they had planned, Beyond would trust her judgment. Like what they where going to do or not, Helena would be the voice of reason to the two boys. Beyond's red eyes fixed on Helena's face. He had always been able to unnerve her with just a look, and he was hoping he looked menacing enough to scare the truth out of her.

"I..." She hesitated a moment, thinking the plan over in her head again. Clementine was her best friend, the older girl had been at Wammy's four years longer than she had. They shared all their secrets. Helena had to Clem of her abuse as a younger child, and in turn, Clem had trusted Helena with her greatest secret, she had grown up in a brothel in Buenos Aires. They had held each other when the night mares had become too much, and had cried together when they turned to waking hells. She owed Clementine too much to not try and win back her best friend's happiness. "I'm okay with the plan." What Helena didn't like about the plan was the small part where she was going to be the "new" bait to L's perverse desires. Clementine would be mad with her for a while, and her and Matt's relationship might suffer for a while, but in the end, their family would be back whole again, and that's all that mattered in the long run. It had always been the five of them, and it would never have to be any different. And then finally, once they were all back together again, they'd flee Wammy's, once and for all. They'd go somewhere L could never find them, and live out the rest of their lives comfortably, and away from the detective's influence.

"Alright then. Just.. don't hurt Clem." Beyond asked, before disappearing into the shadows. Hiding himself away from them so that he could listen in to the next part of their conversation. Helena spoke first, once she had assured herself Beyond was gone. She scanned the edges of the house looking for the signs that Beyond was still there. No red pierced the darkness now. She was fairly certain Beyond had gone off to do something quiet wicked before morning.

"You think this will actually work Mello?" She asked, wringing her hands together in front of the purple frock she was wearing. Beyond smirked, he had always hated purple on her, the color had always made her seem frumpy for a fifteen year old. Beyond closed his eyes, knowing that she would be on the look out for his red eyes in the darkness. Mello's ice blue eyes almost pierced the darkness as much as Beyond's red ones did. He spoke next.

"It will work. It has too. Clem has been the glue that has kept us all together for so long, we owe it to her to try, and I'll be damned if I lose my partner to L." Mello folded his arms across his chest, Beyond could hear the boy's skinny arms tighten across his leather vest, the slight movement of the rosary beads, Beyond's ears straining to pick up every noise, to let him "see" the interactions as well. Beyond tilted his head to pick up on Matt's accent a little bit better. He heard the distinct pop of a lighter, and then smelled cigarette smoke once more.

"Admit it. If she wasn't head over heels in love with him, you'd try for her, wouldn't you mate?" Beyond's fingers tightened on the purchase he had found on the wall. So the blonde was infatuated with his Clemi? That just wouldn't do. No wonder he had been so "keen" on helping him get her back. Beyond doubted the child had a chance, but Clem was just seventeen, as time went by, the boy would grow more assured in himself, enough to take the chance.

"Shut up Matt." Came the tired reply. Mello wasn't even going to fight the well known fact that he had a hard on for the one teacher he actually liked at Wammy's, Clementine had spent enough time in his wet dreams that it should have been obvious to everyone by now, but yet, the red head was the only one who had picked up on it.

"Ooooooh! Mello has a crush!" Helena cooed out then, teasingly. Mello sighed heavily.

"Fuck you both. Back to the plan. Are we ready for this?" He asked then, growing bored with being outside, ready to get back to doing something productive for once.

"Aye, we're ready." Matt finally said, grasping Helena's hand. Beyond stood on the small ledge then, climbing up the wall to the roof as he head the back door to the kitchen open. He didn't need to know who it was. He always knew.

"Come on you three, dinner time!" Came the call from the door. Clementine stood there then, her hands over her belly, stroking the swell of her growing child. Helena looked over, smiling.

"Yeah! We were just plotting, as always!" She said with a smile, earning her a scowl from Mello.

"When are you three not plotting?" Came the good natured laugh from Clementine, as they all filed inside for some of Clementine's home cooking. Beyond grinned from the roof, turning his face towards the sky. Indeed, when there those three not plotting?

AN: It has come to my attention that my disjointed story collection, while designed to be able to be read from any point in the story, don't follow much of a set time line. For those who wish to read them in their true points in the story time line, this story would fall the night after "White Knights" and a few hours before "Pale Moonlight". Enjoy.


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